Possible to apply without UCAS? GPA & EC's looked at?

International Students
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<p>Hello everyone. I was wondering if there is any way to apply to universities without going through UCAS as they limit you to only 5 schools. </p>

<p>Also, is it true that they don't look at GPA at all? I am from the Caribbean we do CSEC equivalent to GCSE; and CAPE equivalent to A Levels. So is it true, that one can basically flunk all of high school and then get all 1's (Equivalent to A's in british exams) in the external examinations and still get in to whichever school is desired (Assuming interview and other things are important), meaning that your grades would be "forgiven" due to performance and standardized exams?</p>

<p>Finally, is it true that UK schools don't care at all about extra-curricular activities as well other than ones related to your career, so if for example you are applying for economics and were the president of the drama club and captain of the tennis team these would mean nothing? Thank you so much in advance for the help :)</p>

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<p>The point of external exams is to see how much you’ve studied and learnt, if you’ve flunked all of high school then my guess would be you couldn’t get all top grades.</p>

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<p>I’m not referring to me in the question, just a hypothetical question of what would happen in general, in the event that that did happen. So essentially, what I’m really asking I guess is: Do UK schools care about school grades at all, or just external exam results?</p>

<p>Oh and one more question. I see that UK schools ask for CAPE/A levels, making no mention of CSEC/GCSE, does that mean that they only look at the A level and equivalent grades and not the GCSE level grades?</p>

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<p>I don’t know about the Caribbean educational system, so my ability to answer your question is limited.</p>

<p>When looking at USA applicants, the main thing that British universities will be looking at is our “AP” exams, these are the nearest US equivalents to British A-levels. For you, it sounds like these “CAPE” tests are the Caribbean equivalents. The UK colleges and unis know that American GPA’s are not standardized–different schools have different scales, and even individual teachers grade differently. But by looking at AP exams they know they have a fairly objective evaluation of what the student actually learned.</p>

<p>I kind of agree with UKgirl that if you “blow off” high school, you won’t be learning enough to pass the AP or CAPE tests at the level that UK universities are looking for. But what about someone who drops out of high school, and then is homeschooled to pass their AP or CAPE tests (maybe in the USA also passing a GED–high school equivalency exam). It seems like this could be someone who could get into a UK university.</p>

<p>And yes, there is much much less emphasis on being “well-rounded” in the UK system. So they are NOT going to pay attention to frivolous irrelevant extracurriculars. Instead, they will want to see someone at the interview who is committed to the subject they intend to read (major in). Someone who seems to just be a “dabbler” in many different areas without a serious commitment to one is going to be less attractive.</p>

<p>Pursue extracurriculars if they really are something you are interested in. (But if that’s what you are interested in, eg drama, why aren’t you planning to study that at college?). Don’t do extracurriculars just to put more stuff on your application. These extracurriculars are a good idea for the USA, where they want these “well-rounded” folks, but not for the UK. (In fact, in an American high school I attended, a group of students started a new club for no other reason than they needed to put another club on their college applications!)</p>

<p>KEVP</p>

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<p>Quite a large percentage of students at UK unis are mature students, and many of these people either did not finish or did badly at (high) school, but have later taken or re-taken A-levels in evening classes or enrolled in an “access” or “foundation” course before being admitted to uni. However, UK A-level are not a random one off test. In school here you study A-levels every day for 2 whole years. There are hardly any other tests other than exams and course work which count towards A-levels. So it would be pretty much impossible to fail at school in the UK and pass A-levels at the same time, as these two are effectively the same thing.</p>

<p>A small number of UK unis do admit applications outside UCAS. Most notably St Andrews has a special application process for American students. This basically indicates they need your money.</p>

<p>ECs are basically irrelevant except for specificlly career-related ones eg if you are applying for medicine having volunteered in a hospital is a good idea.</p>

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<p>Thank you all for the responses and I know about the AP system but as I said, the educational system here in the Caribbean is just like that in the UK i.e. you start high school in grade 7 (1st form) graduate at 5th form (grade 11), from grade 10-11 (4th form-5th form) you study CSEC which is equivalent to GCSE for 2 years and you take the exams at the end of 5th form. After 5th form you graduate, and then you have an option of matriculating to university (for some courses) or you can go to 6th form (Grades 12 and 13) in which you study CAPE (A levels equivalent) for the 2 years and take exams after each year, Unit 1 in 1st year (Like AS levels) and Unit 2 in 2nd year (Like A levels). So as you can see it’s pretty identical, in fact people have been known to study the CSEC and CAPE syllabi and take the GCSE’s and A levels with little to no extra preparation and be successful, that’s how similar the syllabi are. As a matter of fact, sometimes we are even given past papers for GCSE and A levels as a way of preparing for our exams. Anyway that was just a little background.</p>

<p>I am sure about the equivalence as I have checked many universities’ websites already and they do in fact accept it. The thing is, they only say they want X results in CAPE, no mention of CSEC, just as they would say they want AAA in A levels. I am just wondering though if they would even take CSEC into consideration then or whether they just care about CAPE (Done in 6th form).</p>

<p>@TheRealKEVP I agree that persons should pursue what they want and not do extra-curriculars to “pad” their resumes, as often times colleges can even see through attempts such as this. It is possible however for persons to have more than 1 interests that are completely different and thus participate in EC’s related to it, even if they don’t intend to pursue it in college. What I’m wondering though, is if it is worth it to put in on an application if one attained officer positions such as President, Vice-President, etc. in these. While attaining these positions do prove that you didn’t just attend meetings but actively contributed showing some sort of genuineness, it may show that you may not be sure of what you want to do or that you aren’t “focused” enough which is a negative, despite holding positions.</p>

<p>@cupcake In relation to those students who resat subjects and so forth or took foundation classes, are they on an a level playing field with those who are leaving 6th form with good grades straight throughout, or are they placed at a disadvantage?</p>

<p>Ok, I admit that my hypothetical statement about failing all of high school and getting A’s in external examinations was a bit extreme. So how about this situation: Student A got B’s and a few C’s (probably due to not handing in work or paying attention in class but taking internal assessments for granted), maybe a few A’s in high school and got all A’s in A level. Student B got straight A’s in high school and also got all A’s in a level. Assuming both students did the same subjects and got the same number of A’s and/or A*'s would student B be at an advantage or would both students basically be “even” due to their external examinations results, and thus would be differentiated by other factors such as relevant EC’s, interviews, letters of recommendation, etc.? I think what I’m trying to ask here is do they look at your transcript at all, as how American universities would take GPA into consideration (even though I know British schools don’t calculate those, right?). We do have that issue here as well about discrepancies in grading between schools here i.e. grade inflation vs grade deflation, etc. but seeing as though it’s international, I doubt the UK schools would know which schools are known for grade deflation, how is this rectified (if they do look at transcripts and take them into consideration)?</p>

<p>Also, I know that certain courses require certain tests such as the BMAT, LNAT, etc. Is it possible to take these exams offshore, or would one need to travel to the UK to take them?</p>

<p>Finally, this question doesn’t really have to do with the application process but just for general knowledge, why is it that UCAS limits the number of schools one can apply to, and limit it to such a great extent as well?</p>

<p>Sorry for the long posts, I just really want to clarify some things :(</p>

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<p>Just wondering if you are talking about grades or years (UK) above. If it’s the former, this would mean you stay in school a year longer than us as year 13 is equivalent to 12th grade.</p>

<p>With your scenario about the two pupils, their academics would be exactly equal, the only thing that would make a difference would be letter of reccomendation.</p>

<p>I don’t know exactly, but my guess as to why UCAS limit your schools to 5 is just the amount of work and organisation they have put into it, so if every student was applying to 10+ schools, it would be extrememly difficult to do. Also I don’t think 5 is a very small number, you just have to know your priorities before you apply and then be realistic about your choices. There are always people who end up with no offers or who meet none of their offers, but it’s usually their fault or just unlucky. Also if you meet none of your offers you can apply for clearance places at other universities, but it can be very difficult to get anything.</p>

<p>Sorry I can’t answer more of your questions, you can try The Student Room, which may have more students like you to help.</p>

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<p>Depends. I cannot speak for every admissions officer in every university in the UK. I know Oxbridge don’t really like students who have re-sat A-level modules (clearly not as good as someone who got all As first time). But I hope they would not hold it against a student who re-sat due to difficult personal circumstances eg serious illness. Such students cannot be at such a terrible disadvantage as it is really really common. I think older stduents can be at a disadvantage in some professions when they graduate, as I have heard some employers prefer younger graduates as they perceive such people to be easier to train and mould. But I have no evidence for this. it’s just what I’ve heard.</p>

<p>Given that you have to put GCSEs on the UCAS form if you did them, if CSEC is the same as GSCE they will likely be considered, but they won’t be part of a final offer. Basically I suspect you will need equivalent to grade C at GCSE English and Maths. In uni admissions, but also getting jobs in the UK, these Cs are important for everything. </p>

<p>The UK admissions procedure is much more predictable than the US and people have no concept of “reach” schools 9they understand “safety” schools though, but don’t call it that. Most people will apply to one uni offering A-level grades much below their predictions, to make sure of at least one offer). Hence the vast majority of people will get more than one acceptance from just 5 applications, because they apply to courses within their capability.</p>